The Princess Diaries
by Daddy Elric
Summary: [AU][RoyEd] When most people's sisters run away, it means a search party and a court case. When Prince Edward Elric's sister runs away, it means a crossdressing prince and a series of unexpected events.
1. Clarius

We've been having a tough time with getting ideas lately, but this one just JUMPED into Our head with ALL the details figured out! Wowies!

These are the mangaverse Elrics, which is why they both have blonde hair and yellow eyes, instead of Aru's normal anime coloration. -nod- Oh, and did We mention that Aru is GENDERSWITCHED? 8DDDDDDD We needed _some _form of a princess, and We were NOT going to put Winry as poor Edo's sister.

Oh, and, in case you review about the makeup, WE KNOW WHAT EYELINER IS LIKE. We know you don't get stuff on your hands. But who says they have to have an eyeliner pencil in a fictional world? What about an eyeliner stick?

xD You know, when We did this in Wordpad, it looked a lot longer than 2500 words...

**Pairing**: RoyEd

**Disclaimer**: Don't own it! If We did We wouldn't be sitting here writing this. 3 Each chapter is named after a Jumi rank (Legend of Mana fandom.) Dividers are _Chicago is So Two Years Ago _by Fall Out Boy. 8D

-------------------------------------------------

**THE PRINCESS DIARIES**

_clarius_

_/You want apologies? Girl you might hold your breath/_

The Kingdom of Risembool is grand, but it is nothing compared to the country it occupies, the State of Amestris. It is filled with rolling plains, and few hills and trees. The soil is rich and many farms occupy its land, giving it a wonderful country feel that a lot of kingdoms don't possess.

Risembool Castle is an elegant building, with lofty spires covered in gold leaf shingles and stained glass windows that span the rooftop, spilling colored lights and shapes upon the Great Hall. The castle is surrounded by a cheerful commercial town, one that never seems to sleep and is always hustling and bustling.

The court is grand. King Hohenheim presides, alongside his queen, Trisha. They have only two children, both with long blonde hair and expressive golden eyes, and at the moment these two were chatting away in Princess Allie's bedchamber.

"Allie, did you even hear me?" asked her elder brother, scowling and folding his arms. Prince Edward Elric was fiery, hotheaded, and, well, short. His sister was actually taller than he was, even though he was a year older than her. He had suffered an accident years before, and lost two limbs. He'd been quickly outfitted with a pair of heavy metal prosthetics, which he had gotten used to swiftly.

His sister, the princess, was five-four, but she towered over poor Edward. "Shush," Allie snapped, usually-kind voice filled with irritation. "I need to think of a name."

"A name?" asked Edward, blinking stupidly as his sister stepped over to him and swiped his knife from the small sheath strapped to his leg. "Allie, what're you --" He was cut off as she lifted the blade and began hacking off lengths of beautiful straw-colored hair. "I'm not cleaning that up," he decided, stepping back.

Allie grinned as she finished cutting her hair, shortening it to a boyish cut and leaving fallen tresses discarded carelessly on the carpet. "I've got a name," she smiled, back to her gentle, non-irritated self. "Aruphonse."

Edward tilted his head. "Hold on," he said quickly, in case she was about to cut him off again. "Name for what? What'd you cut your hair off for, Allie? Mama's going to kill you." Trisha Elric loved the duo's long blonde hair, and even if Edward had _wanted _to cut his hair off, he wouldn't have been allowed. She would positively _die _when she found out about Allie.

Allie, or rather, Aru, grinned as she pulled out a jerken she'd obviously bartered from the shepherd boys, and stepped behind her changing screen to pull her dinner gown off and her jerkin on. Usually there were ladies-in-waiting to do such a thing for her, but she'd sent them out of the room. "I'm leaving," she said loftily. "Going to seek my fortune somewhere else. I don't want to be married off to some lord."

Edward stared. It wasn't like he didn't understand, definitely not. He would have done the same thing if _he _were a girl and in her place. But... Allie? She was like... obedient. She did what she was told with a smile and didn't talk back. And now she was running away? "What am I going to do if you're gone?" he asked desperately, attempting to make her change her mind. "You know Dad likes you best, and you're going to leave me with him?" He'd been the target for the flat of his father's blade several times, and he did _not _want to be beaten for Allie's departure when he could have stopped her.

"Take my place," she replied, rolling her eyes. "They'll think you're gone. Besides, you can kind of look like me if you put your hair up. Here, I'll show you." She stepped back out from behind the screen, in the jerkin and rabbit-hide leggings. She approached her brother, who blinked, caught offguard as she removed his braid, then twisted it expertly up into a messy bun, grinning. He looked quite like her. "You can pass," she decided. "Too short, though."

"I am not _SHORT_!"

_/Until your breathings stops forever, forever/_

"No, it goes like _this,_" said Allie gently, though she was quite exasperated with her older brother already. Edward sat at her vanity, attempting to learn how she did her hair and makeup. Why did she have to be so secretly rebellious? And why did _his _life have to turn over and hang by its ankles over the side of the castle just because _she _didn't want to be married?

It was the most ridiculous thing he'd ever heard of.

He sighed, propping his chin on his hand. "Allie, do we _have _to do all this stuff?" he asked for the thirty-ninth time. She shut him up with a glare and a hiss of 'it's Aru', and he sat sullenly, cursing his sister's rash decisions. (He overlooked the fact that he was even more rash and she probably got it from him anyway.)

"Of course we do," she replied scornfully, picking up a small tub of some substance Edward didn't really trust. She started rubbing it into his face anyway. "If you're going to pass as me you're going to have to do it properly."

He sat miserably on the stool, shoulders slumpt and pride rather... shattered. He gazed into the mirror in front of him with disgust at the image he'd been forced to take up. All his reflection showed was a girl primping what seemed to be a monster covered in gritty goo. Wonderful. His sister lifted a wet cloth and began rubbing it off, and he was a little more satisfied. At least he didn't look anything like a monster anymore, just himself with a stupid-looking clip on his forehead. "Are we done yet?" he mumbled, earning a shaken head from his sister, who began to pick up different little sticks and show him their use.

"Here," she said, ignoring his question and lifting a stick of kohl and waving it at him. "You hold it between your fingers with a handkerchief so you don't get your fingers all black." She began to line the edges of his eyes with them, and grinned when he blinked obediently and looked at it curiously. "Oh, and don't rub it off," she added. "You'll smudge it all over your face."

"You know, Allie," began Edward, ignoring her hiss of 'Aru' and continuing to speak. "This is all well and fine, and good training, and all, but how are you going to hide my arm and leg?" It wasn't like they could pass as flesh or anything.

"We'll have to do something about them," she agreed, stepping to the vast closet. "Lucky I've got a section with longsleeved gowns," mused Allie, peering into the large walk-in closet for a moment before turning back to look at Edward. "But you're right, your arm and leg _are _problems. We're going to have to find a way to hide them, one that's better than just sleeves and petticoats."

Edward stared at her, still rather stunned. Just _how _were they going to pull this off? "Alli -- er, Aru," he corrected himself, as she pouted. "How am I going to keep this up? I mean, you're running away and I have to stay here and hold down the fort like some duchess? This is so unfair."

Allie smiled, patting her brother's head as she circled him to begin showing him how to put his hair up. "Mostly you'll just need to get dressed," she added. "The ladies-in-waiting do most of this stuff for you. But you'll want to keep them away while you get dressed, I think. Rose is head of my ladies-in-waiting, and she knows I'm leaving, so I'll tell her to help you out."

"Wait a sec, Rose knew before I did?"

"Of course she did, nii-san. You never asked." She finished with his hair, and he looked at it with mild interest. Edward did rather look like his sister, save for the hunting clothes he'd been wearing since the morning. "Kay, come pick out a gown. Remember, it has to be one with sleeves, kay?"

Nodding, Edward stood, feeling rather ridiculous with his bun and his kohl-rimmed eyes. He stepped into the closet, browsing the selection of beautiful gowns and finally selecting a crimson chiffon one from between a grasshopper-green silk dress and a pale yellow frock. "Hey," he said over his shoulder as he removed it from its hanger. "D'you think we could get some of that fake skin the Rockbells were experimenting with?" Those two were always doing something, and Ed bet anything that Winry and Pinako, the Royal Metalworkers, were hard at work making something he could hide his arm and leg with simply because they liked experimenting.

His sister blinked, then grinned and nodded. "Yes! And I heard they were doing different skin tones now, nii-san, I bet we could get one to match yours." She ushered him behind the screen where her blue gown lay, and began tugging at the buttons and clasps on his clothes, which he removed obediently and stood rather awkwardly in his boxers. "And you'll need a corset," she mused, picking up the one she'd discarded and fitting it around his middle.

This wasn't so bad, he began to think. What were girls always complaining about them for? And then she started tightening it, and he quickly found out, giving a small gasp. "Do girls wear these all the time?!" he managed to get out, attempting to get used to it.

"Yes, she replied, pulling it until Edward thought his insides might just explode. "It's fashionable. You forget about it after a while, though, luckily," she added, smiling apologetically as she finished with it, knotting it at the top and handing him the dress. "Put that on and I'll zip up the back."

Her brother sighed with difficulty as he tried to keep his breathing rather level and pull on the dress at the same time. Allie turned him around and did up the back, and she smiled. "See how cute you are, nii-san? You look just like a girl. No one will be able to tell the difference." Edward didn't really think that was such a good idea, but Allie seemed to, and she picked his clothes up from where they lay against the screen and brought them out, beginning to shove them into a small leather knapsack. "I'm borrowing these, kay, nii-san?"

The boy sighed. "I'm beyond caring. Go for it." He wasn't very glad to see that she looked elated at this and began tucking more things into the sack. He looked up as he heard the door creak open and slippered feet step into the room, and he was rather alarmed, but was relieved to see it was just a rosy-haired, blue-eyed girl that both of them knew rather well.

Rose grinned, removing something from the small pouch she'd made by picking up the bottom of her apron and handing the package to Allie. "Here you are," she said, stepping back to allow her friend some room. "Bread and cheese, like you asked. It's Havardi, by the way. I figured you'd like that better than cheddar."

"Either would have done," replied Allie, packing that away too. "Thanks, though, Rose."

The blue-eyed girl nodded with a smile, then turned to Edward, blinking confusedly. "Who's this and why does she look like you?"

The siblings blinked at each other for a moment, then began to roar with laughter, upon which Rose looked at both of them exasperatedly. "Well?" Edward's sniggers diminished as he lifted his right arm, letting Rose take it and examine it. She stared, mouth half-open. "No way," she muttered. "No way! You are not serious!"

"Course we are," replied the boy, scowling, before he was cut off by Allie.

"What my brother is _trying _to say," corrected the former princess, "is that he'd like to know if you want to help him pretend to be me."

A grin stretched across the lips of the young lady-in-waiting, and she nodded to Edward. "At your service, Princess!"

_/The only thing you'll get is this curse on your lips/_

The newest generation of Elric siblings, now completely outfitted in their disguises, left the castle through the aqueducts, the Royal Family's secret means of escape that would take them to beyond the outer gates. Edward was careful not to get his skirts wet, which he found rather bothersome, but Allie seemed to enjoy not having to worry about what she was wearing and simply skipped through the many puddles.

They arrived at the end of the tunnels, and Allie opened the hatch with less difficulty than she seemed to need. Obviously she'd done something to the door in preparation. She held it open for Edward, who was having problems with climbing up the short ladder in his skirts. He stood up haughtily, brushed the front of the dress off, and looked back up biting his lip. "Allie, you're seriously going through with this?"

"Yup," she replied, shouldering her little knapsack. At his sad gaze she smiled, shaking her head. "Don't worry, I'll come back," she assured him. "I'm just leaving till I find something I can _really _do, and not anything to do with princessy stuff."

Which seemed totally unfair to Edward. "So you have to shove it off on me?!" he barked, suddenly filled with a burst of rage. Allie looked shocked, and he bit his lip harder. "Sorry," he muttered, folding his arms and stepping back.

She shook her head, and dove at him, clinging and squishing his totally-fake cleavage. "No, I am. I'll come back," she repeated, and let him go, turning. He reached out, grabbing her wrist. She turned, blinking, and he gave her a proper hug, then placed both hands firmly on her shoulders and pushed. She laughed. "I'm going, I'm going!" She ran off, and Edward watched her go, red skirt dancing in the evening breeze. He shook his head, then decided to stroll around the town till nightfall. Maybe something interesting would happen tomorrow.

And maybe, just maybe, Allie would decide life as an outlaw wasn't for her and come back. What, it wasn't a law not to hope for someone to change their mind, was it?

_/I hope they taste of me forever/_


	2. Diamond

Chapitre deux! It's coming along well, and the ideas are still coming strong! 8D

**LoveChild Rosie**: xD Yeah, well you know what? Get used to it. xDD

**silver candle: **On it. :3

**Momma Mustang: **xD You was waiting for this, wasn't you? Glad We gots it up? xD YEAH WELL YOU KNOW WHAT? YOU WANT A SPOILER? TOO BAD, YOU'RE NOT GETTING ONE. xD Unless you ask Us on MSN and then We's tells you. xD

Did you likes it? We're glad, it was quite overdue. xD Really? Nothing likes it ever? Wowies. o-o

**Bar-Ohki: **xD He's going to have problems being a woman.

**hyperdude: **Actually, popular belief is yours. We've barely seen anyone who says 'Aru', 'cept for like... Momma. And Envy. And Rosie sometimes. Some of Our friends. Anyway, We say 'Aru' and 'Aruphonse' out of preference. It's much too easy to type 'all' when you try to type 'Al'. If you don't like it, you don't have to read it.

**Jane Austen Girl: **xD You have no idea how much We were confused over that first part about the alter ego until We went on your profile. xD He hates that damn thing. It must be so constricting...

**Roy**: Rawr! Yesh! Genderswitch! xD You thought it was PotC, dinchu? xD

Woah! Our break lines work now! Sweet!

**Disclaimer**: Don't own it! Song is _Breathe In _by Frou Frou.

* * *

**THE PRINCESS DIARIES**

_diamond _

Edward loitered around the town for hours. He browsed shops, sampled pastries at the bakery, and stopped at the library to borrow a book from the kindly librarian, who saw the Elric siblings often and was quite good friends with them, often letting them fall asleep there. He returned to the castle with the book clasped in his arms, a schoolgirlish pose his sister had adopted.

He made to go to his room, and then he realized that he was supposed to be his sister and sighed. Why did his sister have to be so... her? He supposed he would have done the same thing, but still. He opened the main door to her chambers, still fuming silently, and realized he wouldn't be able to get the damn gown off without help. Plus, despite his best efforts, he'd gotten mud all over the front of the red skirt.

Why did today have to suck so much?

He finally sighed in defeat, then opened the little hatch that covered the intercom pipe. "Rose," he called wearily down it. "Can you come up here and help me?" There was no answer, and he flopped back on his backside. She couldn't be everywhere, he realized. Rose was probably doing something else. So that meant... he would have to do it himself.

Damn.

The next fifteen minutes were spent wiggling and hopping about the room, as Edward tried furiously to undo the back of his dress. Why did girls wear these stupid things?! It took so damn long to get them off! Not to mention the wind liked to sneak up under the skirt and make him fricking _cold... _He gritted his teeth, lying upside down on the floor with his feet in the air over his head as he struggled with it, then froze as the door squeaked open and he found Rose looking at him with a mix of amusement and confusion on her face.

"Erm... What are you doing?" she asked, blinking and approaching to help turn him back upright.

Edward scowled, sitting up and slumping indignantly. "I was _trying _to get this stupid thing _off," _he snapped, folding his arms and pouting in a very unladylike way. "I wouldn't have been making a fool of myself if you'd been here to help." He gazed up at the girl with a look that dared her to argue.

And of course she didn't. All Rose did was giggle, then crouched behind him, where she began to unzip the dress and untie the corset. The salmon-pink piece of what Edward could only describe as 'hell' loosened, and he immediately found himself letting out a sigh of blissful relief as a feeling of what seemed like all the pressure in the ocean being lifted away from his middle. "Yup," he mumbled, leaning forward and almost flopping right over. "That still feels horrible..."

"Of course it does," agreed the blue-eyed girl. "But," and this he found quite reminiscent of his sister, "it's fashionable. It's all the rage with the women in Central City."

The blonde 'princess' scoffed. "Yeah? Well women in _Central _must have learned not to breathe!"

_/I read you, and God I'm good at it, I'm so spot on/  
_

It took a mere five minutes after that for Rose to direct Edward to his sister's bathroom, where he found himself in what seemed like a mermaid's cavern, or something of the sort. The walls seemed to be changing color, but when he looked at them, it was simple enough to explain. Colored water was pouring down them at all times, creating the effect. Shells, bottles of sand, and interesting rocks were stacked upon every available surface, and he could swear there were fish in that big glass vase over there. It was much prettier than his smaller bathroom, which had a single porcelain tub, one with legs. This wasn't even a tub, though, this was more of a small pool. It was tiled, and bubbles frothed along the surface. What the hell was with this?

He stared at it for quite a while. He was going to have fun having baths, wasn't he?

The blonde paused a moment. No one would come to 'help' him bathe, would they? He didn't want to blow his cover so early on, but he rather needed a bath, and this looked _so_ fun... He shrugged, stripping down and lowering himself into the already-hot water. He paddled about for a moment, then decided he didn't need to move and simply floating leisurely. This, he confirmed, was _much _better than his crappy little tub. This was one aspect of being his sister that he decided he would like. He didn't, however, enjoy very much the way he sank when he let go of the blue side of the pool. So he clung, dragged himself up, and seated himself on the shell of a rather lazy tortoise that seemed to live in the bathroom. He could only wonder where it had come from. He washed his hair while sitting there, freeing it gratefully from othe rather tight bun it was in. Much better now.

The young prince spent maybe half an hour there, then decided he was going to bed. The water was cold now, and he had to talk to his parents about the disappearance that was supposed to be his own, not to mention get some skin from the Rockbells.

_ /Chord shapes in air go press that dissonance if you dare/_

The morning was spent louncing about and doing nothing. Edward supposed that doing nothing was another of his sister's many privileges as princess of Resembool. When he was ready, he called Rose up, who helped him pick out a black gown with electric blue accents and sleeves, and then he went to the engineers'.

_/And you breathing in, finesse an innocent/  
_

Rockbell Metalworks was a clean little shop that was down on the ground floor of the castle. The two women were always tinkering away at something, filling the shop and the kitchens nearby with the sound of hammers clanking and the scent of smoke and firewood. In exchange, the kitchen wafted the scents of whatever the chefs happened to be making at the time into the shop. It was here that Edward entered, marched over to the closest woman, and slammed his hands down on the worktable. "Granny, I need some help."_  
_

The little old woman looked up, blinking behind the thick spectacles perched on her nose. She began to grin amicably, like she usually did with Allie, but it faltered as she paused. She seemed to be wondering if indeed this was really Allie. Then she began to cackle, slapping her knee. "Nice look for you, shrimp!"

"Shut up," replied Edward, folding his arms indignantly over his false bosom and pouting. "At least I look better than you do, micro-granny." Pinako's grin grew.

"Chibi runt!"

"Teensy hag!"

"Mini amoeba!"

"Microscopic witch!"

The old woman began to roar with laughter again. "So what brings you here, Ed? Didn't bust your arm again, did you? Course, you wouldn't be doing anything to break it wearing _that, _I wager, but anyway..."

A new voice cut in, and Edward suddenly found himself with a throbbing pain in his head and a wrench sliding innocently off the quickly-growing bump it had left behind. "Broke what?!" A girl in an apron and a tank top and short skirt stomped into view, fists clenched. "You didn't break my masterpiece, did you?!" Her face was contorted into a snarl, and her blonde ponytail, Edward noticed, seemed to be _crackling. _He hoped it was just full of static and she didn't have super mind powers or something. She paused, and Edward knew that it was only now that she really saw him. She'd basically aimed for his head blindly, skilled at such a feat simply out of a habit of overreacting at Edward. "Erm... Ed?" began the youngest member of the Rockbell clan, Winry, "Just... what the hell are you wearing?"

He scowled. "Look, it's a disguise, okay?! I didn't ask for this!" Besides, none of it had anything to do with what he was wearing! "Anyway, I'm here to know if you can outfit my arm and leg with some of that skin you guys were working on. I need it for my disguise."

Pinako, who was like a... almost a dwarf, with almost pink hair that may once have been red, smirked. "That we can do. Come on, now, _Allie," _she grinned. "Step into my office."

Edward followed, seating himself on the little examination table in the 'office', which was more like an operation room than a real office. It was a little dim, but there was a skylight, so natural light poured in and gave them a decent light to work with. "So what do we do to it?" he asked, blinking.

"Not much," admitted Pinako, hauling out a large box that looked rather dangerous for her to be handling, but she simply shoved it up beside the prince, crinkling Edward's taffeta skirt in the process. "Pick your skin tone, then fit it on like a glove. It's thin, but not translucent, so you can't see the metal beneath it." She opened the box, then gestured to the smaller boxes that inhabited the inside of the big one. "There's a label on each one with the color of the tone, match it up with yours."

He nodded, then selected the proper tone after a few moments of searching. "Kay, got it," he announced, then slid the glove-like cover over his hand, flexing the metal fingers to get a good feel for it. "This'll do fine." Plus now he could wear sleeveless dresses... "Thanks, guys, I owe you."

"We get paid, it's fine," grinned Pinako, shouldering her own giant wrench. "See you when you bust that thing again." She opened her mouth to say something else, but of course, Winry's voice broke in from outside the little room.

_"I SAID NOT TO BUST IT!" _

_/And I'm high enough on all the waiting/  
_

Edward passed some twittering maids on his way back up to his sister's chambers to pull the arm on fully. The little snippets of conversation he could gather added up to say that there was some new suitor here for Princess Allie. He'd just send the guy away, he supposed... This was Allie's domain, this part, and he wanted none of it. He didn't want a girlfriend, who said he wanted a boyfriend? He was quite prepared to simply stay out of the romance scene altogether, never marry, and go down fighting in a flurry of flames.

Of course, he wouldn't be doing it in a blue-and-black taffeta gown, but that was irrelevant.

Anyhow, he rushed up to the rooms, shrugging his right arm out of his dress sleeve to pull the literal second skin on, then rushed back down, pulling his sleeve up as he went, and hoping he wasn't making too bad a mess of the thick, bouncy little ringlets his ponytail had been put into in the morning. It just wasn't proper for a 'young lady' such as himself to be in such a dither that he completely ruined his hair.

When he came back down, more than half of the maids had congregated in the Entrance Hall, but they moved when they saw him coming, one hand holding up his skirts so he could walk a little more properly. They had moved into a formation so that there was a single neat walkway that he could stroll down to meet this new suitor of Allie's, and he did so with a rather smug grin on his face. He was going to open the door, give the guy a once-over, and slam the door in his face. The maids would whisper, but he didn't care. Allie probably wasn't coming back, she didn't need a reputation.

This plan was working well. That was, till he opened the door and saw the rather handsome man stepping out of a carriage drawn by twin black horses, with diamond splotches of white on their foreheads. The horses' ankles looked like they'd been dipped in bleach, they were so white. As soon as the man stood, the footman hopped off his perch on the side of the carriage, removed the new suitor's bags, and carried them behind him with a look of snobbiness. Well, he certainly didn't like the _footman... _Luckily, he could have such a person dismissed; he'd seen his sister do it countless times to servants who were less than gentlemanly. Now, to see if thesuitor himself was like that.

Edward stepped out of the grand doors leading into the castle, slippered feet padding quietly on the marble steps. He paused some five feet away from the beginning of the stairs, watching the man step gracefully up the stairs and give a rather dashing smirk to the maids, who immediately squealed and began to quarrel over which of them he'd 'smiled' at. Ed rolled his eyes, but grinned. This guy was smooth. He'd have to keep his guard up.

And then finally the guy scaled the steps and bowed to him, and he was rather taken aback, not quite sure what to do. The man didn't seem to notice, however, and straightened back up. He was taller than Edward, to be sure, but he still may have been a little short. He had short, feathered raven hair, and dark, rather expressive eyes, ones that gave away secrets his face would never. This guy was... woah. Edward stuttered for a moment, unsure of what to say to this new one, but the man took his left hand (he thanked all the non-existent gods for this one) and placed his lips upon the fabric of his white glove rather like a feather touching down after a long spiralling fall would do. "Lady Allison," murmured the man against Edward's hand. Ed stared for a moment, then snatched back his hand. The man took a sweeping bow, and then somehow produced a crimson rose from... out of nowhere? What was this guy, a street magician? He presented it to the short boy with an air of princelike dignity. "Lord Roy Mustang, at your service."

Oooh, so this guy was a lord. Allie was missing out, thought Edward with an inward smirk. He nodded to the Lord guy, clasping his hands before him.

This guy was going to be _so _fun to mess around with.

_/To ride a wave on your inhaling/_

* * *

Rawr! Second chapter, fini! 


	3. Flourite

Rawr! Chapter three! Love Us! Sorry for the long wait between updates. xD; We haven't really been in a writing mood while at home. We've had an annoying couple of days.

**Bar-Ohki: **xD He only _thinks _he's going to be able to mess with Roy, because you know what? _No one _messes with Roy Mustang. xDD

**Jane Austen Girl: **We're so honored to be acknowledged by so many madeups! -grin-

**PaperDragonfly: **xD Ed doesn't think he's going to have any fun at all.

**LoveChild Rosie: **xDD Sorry, Rosie, this is a different Roy. He's only like... nineteen. xD He's not related to Rose.

**Momma Mustang: **-pets- xD Aw, poor Momma got distracted, huh? xD Don't you love Roy? He knows he's hawt. xDD Yesh! Momma gets sneak peeks! Course Rosie can has some too if she wants, but... that's irrelevant. Momma still pwns.

**Vanessa Elric: **xD Course he is.

**silver candle: **Course he doesn't. He's pwn though. -grin- He'll be sure to drop lots of short jokes.

**KobrahEdo: **On it!

**GreedxEd: **o-o Nope. We haven't heard of that manga before, is it good?

**Disclaimer**: Don't own it, as usual. Song is _STEP you _by Ayumi Hamasaki. Please keep in mind that We don't remember the exact ranks for the Jumi, so We're doing the best We can to list them in order greatest to least. If you know them, can you review and tell Us the proper order? o-o xD And RENT fans should get that 'ambassador's daughter' thing.

* * *

**THE PRINCESS DIARIES**

_flourite _

As soon as Edward blinked up at the darkhaired man, the little rose perched delicately between his fingers, he was kidnapped by Rose, who gave the young lord a smile over her shoulder that she hoped assured him that she was not going to be killing Risembool's only princess anytime soon, despite what it might look like. Ed, who was a little dazed, simply followed meekly, and when they got up to his sister's room (which was really his now) let himself be pushed down to sit on the bed without a struggle.

"Okay," said Rose in a rather unnaturally commanding voice. "You have to learn something new today." Edward stared. He seemed to be re-learning how to live, what was one other thing compared to the mountain of girlish trials he'd been subjected to? "You know how to waltz, right?" she asked, giving him a scrutinizing look. It wasn't as if he was one of those princes who thought themselves of too high standing to join amongst the dance-goers in, well, a dance, but she'd never seen him _dance. _Sure, he walked around the dance floor, talking and going on, but she'd never seen him partner up with someone and actually dance.

The boy's golden gaze took on a look of slight confusion, but he nodded. "The lead," he replied, blinking. "I've danced with Mama before... Why? I don't have to learn the other part, do I?" It wouldn't be surprising... His gaze narrowed when she gave him a rather apologetic grin, and he groaned. "You are _not _serious," he mumbled, sighing. "Fine... But just how much of this girly stuff do I have to learn? I mean, Allie's going to come back eventually, right? And when she does, I can stop being princess."

Rose nodded, but her apologetic smile never faded. "You're right," she agreed, "but we don't know just _when _Allie's coming back, if at all, so you have to learn whatever you can." She took his hand and pulled him up, and he blinked stupidly as she took his waist and put his hand on her shoulder, and took his other hand. "You're lucky I know both parts," she commented, smile lighting up her blue eyes for a moment before her brow furrowed as she concentrated on the dance. "Kay, step back when I step forward, and so on. I'm sure you know the lead -- mirror it." Edward scowled, but did as she said, and found it actually quite easy. He was a little surprised at this, but kept going. "And that's it," said Rose finally, seating herself on the corner of the wine-colored duvet.

"So..." mumbled Edward, blinking. "What did I have to learn this for, again?" The apologetic smile came back, and his gaze narrowed. Was she plotting something? "_What, _Rose?"

A mumble. He glared, and she looked rather as if she would like nothing more than to sink into the floor. "There's a... ball for each... suitor... and so..."

He stared. "A _ball?! _Since when?!" He'd never attended any balls _before. _What, had they figured him out already and decided to put him through hell or something? Aaaaargh. But no, he couldn't have been figured out so quickly. He was sure it was something else, and he was going to find out, dammit! "This is so unfair."

"Sorry," returned Rose with the same apologetic look. "Oh, and you'll be seeing the King and Queen tonight, so please try to keep in character. It hasn't mattered much till now, but your mother won't be fooled easily. C'mon, now, one more practice dance, and then you go have a bath. I'll have someone put out some things for you." She got back up, took his hand and his waist, and since he know what they were doing this time, obediently put his hand on her shoulder. They moved to her quiet little hum, and she tapped her finger on his side each beat, and they shuffled about the empty room gracefully for a few moments, till she stepped away. "Kay," announced the blue-eyed girl. "Pick out something for the ball, and a mask to go with it, and then leave them out on the bed and go have your bath. I'll be back to do your hair and makeup after that."

He grumbled about having to be all primped up _again, _but nodded and stepped away from her, opening the large closet and stepping inside.The blonde blinked about the room, looking for a formal ball gown. And of course, his sister's ladies-in-waiting would have these in sections, and he found them quickly, selecting a wine-colored silk gown. It didn't have a very long train, but of course, this was a ballroom gown, and in the ballroom you danced. It wouldn't do to be tripping over your skirts while you danced. The train was the same wine-reminiscent hue, and it tapered as it reached the edge of the bodice to reveal a black skirt beneath it.The bodice, the same burgundy wine color, bared his shoulders and probably would have made his sister look gorgeous. If, of course, she'e ever worn it. Holding it up against himself in the mirror, he just figured it made him look goofy. He nodded in satisfaction, then brought it to the bed, where he left it alongside a sequined burgundy mask to match.

That was all, and he went into the large bathroom, sighing as he realized no one was there to help him take off the corset. "Fine," muttered the blonde, "I'll get it off myself." He could get _this _dress off quite easily, and he did so, stripping down to his boxers (which he'd been allowed to keep on under his skirts and petticoats) and with quite a lot of concentration (he furrowed his brow and gritted his teeth) managed to reach behind himself awkwardly and untie the bow. The rest was simple; he just had to loosen it. "Yeah," said Edward triumphantly as he finally got it off, "Fuck you, corset."

Sighing, he took his bath quietly, glad that for once he wasn't being bugged by suitors and balls and ladies-in-waiting. Not, of course, that he'd been bugged by them for a long time. He just liked to pity himself.

_/"Where are you, what are you doing around this time?" - _"_imagoro doko de nani shite iru kana?"/_

Red sunset's light was flooding through the windows of the castle as the young prince finished his bath. He came out, wrapping himself in a towel as he did, and found something suddenly flung in his face, turning the world black. "Augh!" They slid off, and he found Rose giggling at him. Boxers. "You're insufferable," he told her, but he was grinning as he disappeared behind the screen, pulling them on and coming back out. "Do I have to put the corset back on?" he asked, but it was more like a whine. He scowled into the closet, where a small shelf held the hellish little bits of lingerie.

"Course," chirped Rose with a smile, retrieving one of said pieces of hell out of the closet and positioning it around his middle. "Plus if you wear it, you'll be thinner, and then you'll be able to fit into the dresses much better than you could without it." This wasn't much of a reason to Edward, but he sighed and accepted his fate, taking a deep breath as she tightened the evil little thing around his stomach. "There, go put your dress on and I'll fasten it up for you."

He put his dress on obediently, but rolled his eyes. None of this was much fun. And the worst of it was that he was wearing his _sister's _clothes, living his _sister's _life. This would have been much more fun if he'd been the one to run away. Instead, it had to be his kind, patient little siste, and he had to be subjected to corsets and skirts!

"Okay," said Rose, turning him around and placing his mask on his face, adjusting it so the prince could see. "You're ready. Don't forget you have to talk to the king and queen. You're going to have to tell them that 'you're' gone."

He scowled at the needless orders, but nodded. "Yeah, yeah, I know. And I have to dance with that guy, right?" Considering he'd only ever danced with his mother, dancing for the first time with someone who wasn't her and was his _sister's _suitor would feel a little weird. Then again, this whole thing was weird. He supposed he'd get used to it. Hadn't he just done the waltz with a lady-in-waiting?

"Yup. Off you go, now, make all the other girls jealous," winked Rose, striding out of the room to make her own preparations.

Edward's shout followed her down the hall. "I am not a _girl!_"

_/Right after I thought such things - nante omotta sono ato sugu ni/  
_

The sunset was giving way to darkness as Edward stepped down the stairway, nearing the Great Hall. He would be the last person there, and as such, would be a "guest of honor" or sorts. Of course, the real guest was one Lord Mustang, who, he noted, he hadn't seen come in. (He'd stood at the top of the stairs and watched the guests pour in, regarding their extravagant outfits boredly.) Where could he have gone? He hadn't, like, escaped, had he? Edward shrugged, then swept down the stairs, passing the guards who stood at the bottom of each banisterwith an acknowledging nod.

And here came Lord Mustang himself, dressed in a stylish combination of breeches and tunic, stumbling into the door. Edward looked down to stee what had made the older noble trip, then snorted. His shoe was untied. Edward put on his sweetest little smile, hoping to act just a little like Allie, but rolled his eyes when he realized that with the personality this man had, what with all the shallow winks to the maids and everything, the guy wouldn't care. So he flung the little smile away and approached normally.

Roy was adjusting his tunic with a huff. Edward sniggered, but stopped as Roy blinked up at him and he blushed, embarrassed to have been caught laughing at his suitor. He picked up the side of his skirt, curtseying as neatly as he was able, though he wobbled a little.He glared at Roy, who was still occupied with his shirt, daring him to laugh. Roy didn't seem to notice. Edward looked away, then turned back as he found the darkhaired man regarding him with an amused look and a lifted brow.

"What?" asked Edward, attempting to keep his voice even a little bit Allie-ish -- that is, gentle and generous and kind and all those nice things. He didn't cut it. He supposed it wouldn't matter, but if he were to meet with his parents with Roy alongside him, he would have to try his best. So he figured this served two purposes: it was good practice for being his sister, and if Roy came to meet his parents, his deceitful voice would be believeable.

"Nothing," replied Roy, smirking his (very handsome, Edward noticed with a note of disgust -- he wasn't supposed to find this guy handsome! Couldn't get attached to someone who wouldn't be his in a while, after all.) usual smirk. "Having problems with those skirts of yours?"

Should have known he was making fun of him. "Of course I am," replied Edward, dropping the façade. "They're annoying." This seemed to be the only communication needed other than some eye contact, and Roy offered his arm, which the 'princess' took after a moment.(Left arm, of course. Skin or not, his right was still made of metal.)

They entered the ballroom to a roaring silence. Edward blinked. All eyes were on them.

The room was illuminated with the light of thousands of candles, all flickering dutifully away. They lit the grand chamber, throwing shadows to dance with the gargoyles who perched above it all, watching like sentries carved of stone. Tapestries lined the marble walls, their white flanks curling with tendrils of pyrite. No light shone through the grand skylight, but instead stars littered the ceiling. The Royal Orchestra had been set up in a corner of the giant room, and violin danced with cello, trumpet and horn. Long tables flanked the walls, littered with hors d'oeuvres, bottles of wine, and a single table was covered solely in crystal goblets. It was in this room that a new voice broke through the dead silence. "Ah, and the arrival of our dear princess and her consort has finally occurred. Welcome, you two."

Attention was drawn to a man standing at the head table, dressed in grand robes. He had violet hair (he liked to dye it as a teen and had experimented with different colors until sticking with purple) and smart gray eyes that grinned even when his mouth did not. Alexander Connor Rubens was the Royal Playwright and Speech Giver, and though he was good at public speaking, he was much too shy when dealing with relationships, and Edward often wondered how it was that Rubens had picked up Rose, who was both younger than him and even more shy. Yet tonight, she was on his arm, and she herself looked stunning, in a periwinkle gown and mask (everyone had one) and her red hair in an elaborate updo. Rubens opened his mouth once more, grinning. "Glad you could join us." He turned back to the rest of of the guests, spreading his free hand (Rose had the other). "As I was saying, the king and queen will not be attending, but please feel free to make yourselves comfortable. They may not want me to tell you this, but I believe the King has gone somewhere, and the queen has taken to her bed for the day."

All the guests began to talk at once, and Rubens grinned with the same apologetic grin Rose often used. Maybe she'd picked it up from him, or vice versa. He beckoned to Roy and Edward, who looked at each other for a moment in confusion before weaving through the crowd and joining the other couple. "What?" asked Edward, blinking. "What happened to Mama and Dad?"

Rubens shook his head. "Sorry, Princess," he apologized, "but there's no time for that at the moment." He paused, looking around the ballroom. "Where's your brother?" asked the playwright, blinking. Rose giggled and whispered something in her date's ear, and he spluttered, realizing just where the princess' brother had gone to. His gaze fell upon Roy, who was looking at him in a mixture of confusion and slight amusement, however, and he quickly stopped his mild freak-out, composing himself once more. "I see. Anyhow, you two will have to lead the dance. Are you prepared?"

Edward nodded, considering he was quite ready and both he and Rose knew it. "Of course," he replied, hooking his hand back around Roy's forearm. "Do we begin now?" He'd just like to get this over with, thank you. This princess business was tough work.

"If you like," replied the playwright, stepping away. "We'll join you in a moment. I'll inform the orchestra of their task." He hurried away, Rose tagging along. Edward and Roy watched, and Rubens spoke something to the maestro, who nodded and began moving his hands in a different formation. Suddenly, the room was filled with a new song, and the 'princess' and her consort stepped forward, taking up the position and beginning the simple waltz.

_/Even just for a moment - tatoeba hon no chotto de ii kara/  
_

The young prince found himself regretfully liking the man more and more as they spoke while dancing. However, the man had a way of poking fun at him, and he'd always decide 'No, I hate you' before throwing that away and admitting that yes, he did like him. It was odd. Edward wondered if everyone had this problem. He, of course, had never even had a crush before, so he had no idea how to go about such things.

"So..." he said quietly, as they stepped apart. "Where did you learn to waltz?" It was interesting to know this man's background, and in turn tell his own.

"With the Xingian ambassador's daughter in her dorm room at Central's military headquarters," replied Roy, smirking his usual smirk. "And you?"

"With my mother," admitted the prince, "but I re-learned just recently. Today, actually," he added. "With Rose in my sis -- my _brother's _bedroom." Dammit, there wasn't more than one princess! And Roy probably knew it, so slipping up now of all times wouldn't be a very good plan.

A click sounded, and the dancing pair looked up to see the giant grandfather clock, which had just struck midnight. Roy looked back down to Edward, who was still looking up at the clock stupidly. "Not going to pull a Cinderella on me, are you?" he asked with a grin. "Don't leave me here just because it's midnight. I don't want any glass slippers. And I really don't want to have to fit shoes on all the women in Amestris just because you flaked on our first date."

"I'm not _flaking,_" replied Edward with a snort and giving a curtsey. He was a bit better at it now. "And I'm not leaving slippers anywhere, especially glass ones. Much too breakable."

"My thoughts exactly."

_/I wanted you to remember me - atashi no koto o omoidashite tte/_

* * *

Rawr! Longest chapter yet! How did it get to be so long?!  



	4. Ruby

Woah, chapter four, and so many reviews already. xD To answer the question of a couple of users, no, Roy has no idea that Ed is actually Ed and not Allie. And by the way, We don't need the Jumi list anymore, if anyone actually knew it. xD

**Jane Austen Girl: **xD; Yeah, okay, We thought We might have been using it wrong. Thanks for correcting Us!

**Bar-Ohki: **xDD Allie has a place to come back. Don't worry, it'll be good.

**LoveChild Rosie: **xD RubensRoooose! Iss so cute, We had to add some in. xD The Xingian ambassador's daughter... IT'S_ RENT_!

**Momma Mustang: **No, don't worry, that made no sense at all. We still love you, though. xD Of course he wouldn't! S'why he assured Ed he wouldn't. xD o-o Plots? More plots? Tells! xD We did keep you posted about the good things! Edo cried!

**GreedxEd: **xD That does sound good. We'll have to check it out. Yay for yaoi!

**Vanessa Elric: **Yesh! He'd like to get to know him, no matter how infuriating the guy is. xD

**silver ****candle: **Don't you love how poor Edo falls right into the puddle of love? xD He's growing on Roy. Don't make Us give away everything yet! xP

**haganenohono: **xD We did too. o-o We don't know yet, actually. We'll see how it goes.

Disclaimer: Dividers are _Nothing Gold Can Stay_ by Robert Frost.

* * *

** THE PRINCESS DIARIES**

_ruby_

_/Nature's first green is gold/__  
_

The night wore on, and finally the ball ended after what seemed like days, but happy ones. At the end of the night, Roy escorted the eldest Royal Sibling (though to him, 'she' was the youngest) to the staircase, where they parted, a kiss lingering on the gloved hand of the 'princess' and a 'thanks for your time' hanging in the air. Cinderella's flight, however, would be delayed for a little while, and it would be the Queen to push Cinderella over the edge.

Several days passed in which Edward received passing smiles from Roy, whom he passed in the hallway almost every day (the prince was beginning to believe Roy was stalking him). Not to mention the always-looming presence of corsets, along with the scent of some cologne he couldn't name mixed with cotton and the slight scent of matches that had just gone out. It was clinging to what seemed like everything he (or rather, his sister) owned. Or maybe it was just that one dress, and after putting it back in the closet after wearing it (to the disgust of one of the ladies-in-waiting), the scent had permeated just about everything in there. Hell, even the _corsets _smelled like it. And he totally had not gone anywhere near _Roy _in one of _those. _

What a week.

Currently, Edward was sprawled on his sister's bed in a camisole and his boxers, and of course, his fake cleavage, reading. He'd always been an avid reader. He looked up as the door opened, and in came Rose, looking rather breathless. "Hey," she said urgently, yanking the book out of Edward's hands without a look to make a note of what page he was on and throwing it over her shoulder. Edward watched it land miserably on the floor, cover wide open and flopped on the ground, and looked up at her with a look that clearly asked why the hell she'd made him lose his page. She ignored him. "Ed, the queen -- she's still in bed. Sick."

He sat bolt upright. "What about Mama?!" he barked, jumping up off the side of the bed and wriggling into the simple white cotton shift he'd left to gather dust and form wrinkles on the floor. "What's going on?!" So that was why...

Earlier in the week, _Edward had gone to the Throne Room to visit his parents. The room was nearly empty, save for a long red carpet that lead to the low platform where the thrones resided. At the end of this room was a door, and the day he'd gone to visit, a large, heavily muscled man was standing in front of the door, arms folded. Edward had promptly picked up the hem of his skirts and ran over._

_"Armstrong," said the 'princess', a bit out of breath. The Captain of the Guard was never on guard in front of his parents' chambers. Usually, the beefy man was in the barracks, overseeing. There was usually only a grunt standing guard, so to have Captain Alex Louis Armstrong himself on duty was a big thing, no pun intended. The man looked down at him, the small blonde curl on his forehead and his large mustache quivering. His blue eyes twinkled, but Edward wasn't sure if Armstrong was supposed to look happy or menacing. The prince's mouth ran dry, and he stepped back, knowing exactly what was coming._

_"Oh, Allie Elric!" the big man said passionately, scooping the prince up into a gigantic bear hug. "I was so worried! Did you treat your escort well?"_

_Edward squirmed, spine cracking loudly, but it seemed to do his stiff back a little bit of good. "Yes! I did! Put me down!" The bald man placed Edward back down with a nod. The skirted prince promptly fell over, rubbing his back. "Anyway, Armstrong... Why're you here? Aren't you usually at the barracks?"_

_Armstrong looked grave. "The queen herself sent the order. I'm to stay here until further orders. Witness my patience, taught in the Armstrong clan for generations!"_

_Edward was already down the hall._

Now, he looked at Rose expectantly. "So what happened?" he asked urgently. He wanted _answers,_ dammit.

"You're sent for. She's..." Rose trailed off. Edward had gotten up, hauled on a simple shift of white silk and some slippers, and stormed out the door.

_/Her hardest hue to hold/_

Reaching the throne room, he lifted the hem of his skirts just like he'd done those few days ago and ran across the vast room, not caring that he'd lost his slipper and automail toes covered in a thin, stretchy material were slapping the marble floor loudly. Regardless of this, he stopped in front of the door, where Armstrong was still standing. "Armstrong! Mama -- is she --"

"She's asking for you and your brother. Where is he?" Armstrong stepped aside obediently, looking at the disguised prince with an inquiring gaze.

"Nii-san's gone," he replied. Actually, it was the other way around, but Armstrong didn't need to know that. "It's just me here." He stepped forward, opening the door. Armstrong followed quietly. Edward paused, regarding the scene in front of him in confused horror. "M... Mama?"

Queen of Risembool Castle, Trisha Elric, was lying bedridden, eyes half-lidded and glazed over. She had a folded, damp cloth lying limply on her forehead, and each breath she took was ragged and wheezing. She would cough every so often, and a splatter of blood trickled down her lip, coughs wracking her now-frail form violently. Two maids fluttered about her bedside, fretting. The Queen's long brown hair was lying limp, unbound from its usual position and simply gathered and tied, sitting on her shoulder so as to not insulate the fevered back of her neck any more than it had to. Edward promptly tackled one of the maids, who he deemed 'too close to his mother', and as the pair of maids -- who were frightened off by the 'princess' -- scrambled away out the door, he took a place beside the bed, taking his mother's hand gently.

The Queen's gaze lifted, and a little consciousness returned to her eyes. "Allie?" she asked weakly, trying to prop herself up, but Edward wouldn't allow it and pushed her gently back down. "What are you... doing here? Weren't you supposed to be with that man we sent for...?"

Edward shook his head. "No, not right now, Mama. Um... It's Ed," he added quietly. He wasn't sure she could hear him, but she seemed to acknowledge that he was not Allie. "Mama, are you... going to be okay?" He watched her, without blinking in case he missed some signal.

She gave a sad smile, then turned her head, shaking it.

He kept his tears back. "O... okay." But it wasn't, and he knew it.

There was no burst of flames, no flash of light, when Risembool's beloved queen died. She didn't go down valiantly, she didn't ride gallantly into sure death. Hers wasn't a hero's death. It didn't seem possible. No one but Captain Armstrong witnessed Edward Elric's face crumple as his mother's eyes dimmed, and her hand went limp, and he buried his face in his arms upon the bedsheets, still gripping his mother's limp hand, and cried.

_/Her early leaf's a flower, __but only so an hour/_

Roy Mustang was making his way to the Great Hall when suddenly someone dashed past him, and he blinked and turned back around to see who it was. It was a small person, wearing a simple white dress and missing a slipper. This girl had long blonde hair that had probably been curled elaborately once, but now it was tousled and the ringlets were bouncing free.

"Lady Alli --" Roy was cut off as Allison stormed out the grand doors, through the open gates, and out into the wet spring, toward the river.

What the hell?

Promptly, the blackhaired man began running after her, forsaking his dinner in the process. He was going to find out what was going on.

_/Then leaf subsides to leaf/_

Edward had noticed Roy as he ran past, but he didn't care. Roy wouldn't find him where he was going, and besides, he didn't want to talk to anyone. Roy owuld just ahve to come to him if he wanted a chat.

The sky was dark, all sunlight blocked out by dense clouds that threatened to begin raining upon them without mercy. He kicked off his other slipper as he went, toes squelching in the mud. No point in wearing only one slipper if he was going to be flopping through the mud, which the entire road was made of at the moment, stopping as they reached the rocks that bordered the rain river. Right now, in early spring, the rain river was crashing with water, from the snow that had melted over the winter. It would have almost completely evaporated by autumn, leaving only a trickle to freeze and pretty much eliminating any skating rinks that may have been possible in the summer. Coarse gravel lined the water's edge, and it was here that Edward now stood, looking sullenly at the water. Without any more hesitation, he plunged forward into the rain river, and then promptly fell on his face. Knowing he couldn't just lie there, the prince sat up, fists gripping the stones under the water. His entire front was soaked, but he didn't much care.

"...Lady Allison?"

That voice... Roy. Edward bent his head, trying not to be seen, but he could hear footsteps sloshing through the millions of gallons of water that were rushing by relentlessly. When he'd thought Roy wouldn't find him, he hadn't counted on the man following him immediately... The boy heaved a sigh as he felt a hand upon his shoulder and looked up to find the blackhaired lord looking down at him with a not-very-well-concealed concern in his black eyes. "Lady Alli --"

"It's Allie," came Edward's voice, barely audible over the rushing water. "No 'lady'." He went back to staring forlornly at the water, and Roy knelt beside him.

"Are you all right?"

"..."

"...I see." Roy's arm curled gently around the boy's shoulder. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Edward shook his head, leaning into the small hug and clutching at Roy's chest as if he thought that if he stopped clinging, he would fall into a state of misery so deep there would be no recovering. "Do you think..." he began, and Roy looked down at him inquisitively. "Do you think he'll come back?" 'He', of course, was the real Allie, but Roy thought it was _him, _so he would talk about himself. Really he wasn't lying, not exactly. Allie was undercover as a boy, so he could refer to her as 'he' without lying.

"Your brother?" asked Roy, and Edward nodded. "You miss him, hmn?"

"...Yeah."

The arm around Edward's shoulder tightened a little, drawing the younger noble closer. "I'm not sure, but keep your hopes up. He'll come back eventually."

"...I guess." Edward squeezed his eyes shut as another spell of tears threatened to run down his kohl-streaked cheeks. He leaned on Roy's shoulder, and in turn the man held him, and he didn't mind letting the kohl-blackened tears slide down his face and mingle with the water, sweeping them away. He felt his eyelids drooping, and slowly shut them as with probably grief and stress and exhaustion mixed together, he fainted.

"...Thanks..."

Roy gave the boy one of his rare smiles then, lifting the prince up in a rather soggy bridal position to carry him easier. "Anytime," he replied softly, walking slowly back to the castle.

_/So Eden sank to grief/_

The young lord returned to the castle with the princess cradled in his arms only fifteen minutes after he left the river. He placed the blonde down on the stone steps outside the castle door as he opened it, then picked her back up, closing the door with his foot. She didn't budge, and he snorted and began to bring her up the stairs to her room.

"Oh! Lord Mustang!"

Roy looked up to find a blue eyed, redhaired girl looking at him, a pile of linens folded in her arms. She looked rather stressed, and he wondered why. Maybe it tied in to what Lady -- er, Allie, was crying about. "Do you need directions to Her Highness' room, sir? I'd be happy to guide you there."

"That would be a help. Thank you, er..." What was her name?

She smiled. "It's Rose. C'mon, we don't want her getting sick." She jerked her chin toward the top of the stairs, then set off, her carrying the laundry and Roy the princess. They made it up the marble staircase without much difficulty, pausing only once as Roy shifted Allie in his arms. Rose opened the door to the princess' room, placing the pile of laundry beside it to be picked up later. She stpped across the wine-colored carpet, motioning to behind the screen. "Okay," she said, "put her here, and I'll get her into some pajamas. Then you can put her into the bed." Roy nodded, placing the unconscious princess against the screen and stepping back.

Rose watched him disappear to the other side, then turned to Edward. "Oh, Ed," she whispered, exasperated. "You're such a bother sometimes." She stripped him down to sodden camisole and boxers, decided those could stay on him and pulled him into a nightgown. Ed just flopped.

Rose came back out from behind the screen with a gesture to behind it, where Roy assumed that Allie lay. "You can take her now," she announced, smiling and stepping to the door. "I'll see you later, milord," she added, clasping her hands before her and bowing before pulling the duvet on the bed back and travelling to the door.

"All right," he replied, nodding and striding to where Allie lay behind the screen, picking her up again. Rose left the room then. Roy didn't mind. He placed the unconscious princess on the bed, pulled the blankets over here, and, careful that Allie didn't wake up, placed a small kiss on the girl's cheek. He left the room after that, a trace of pink on his pale cheeks as the only evidence to show he'd just kissed Risembool's only princess.

Edward's eyes fluttered open, and his hand ventured up to touch his own cheek. He blinked. It tingled. What had...?

He fell asleep before he finished his thought.

_/So dawn goes down to day/_

Edward woke up to a great confusion on the lower levels of the castle. His mind registered it only dimly, but as he woke up and propped himself up on his elbows, he realized what all the hullabaloo was about and gritted his teeth. _I** won't **__cry, _he told himself firmly, but somehow did anyway. A little bit, at least. Sighing, Edward got up out of the bed and wondered whether he was supposed to get dressed by himself today or not. He couldn't to the corset by himself, though... Fortunately, just as he picked up the little bell Allie used to call Rose when she was sick, the redhaired lady-in-waiting came in, pushed him behind the screen, and began to dress him without a word. "Rose," he said quietly, "is everyone rushing around because of --"

She cut him off. "Shush," was all she said, then went back to trying up his corset before pushing him into the closet to pick out a dress, which he did promptly (violet silk with pink accents) and came back out, looking at Rose expectantly. "Fine," she said, scowling. "Look, sorry, everyone's just really stressed out. They're..." She paused, attempting to gauge his ability to hear that his mother had died again. "They're digging the Queen's grave. She's to be cremated in a months time, and then her ashes will be buried. There's funerals to plan, though, and gravestones to carve and everyone's just totally overworked and..." She trailed off, blinking. Edward had keeled over into a dead faint. She had gauged his abilities wrongly, she saw. Sighing, she looked sheepish and dragged him to the bed, propping him up and fanning him with a handkerchief. Sometimes, things were just way too difficult with this boy...

_/Nothing gold can stay/_


	5. Sapphire

Woah... We're getting near the end, people! Hoping to end it next chapter or the one after that! But We've got a sequel in mind, so keep your hair straight and your shirt on the right way. xD

o-o So many reviews... You guys really like this thing, huh? xD

**Reviews:**

**Jane Austen Girl: **xD Allie's closet is... very weird. It's full of like everything imaginable in the realm of clothes. xD Yesh, he dooooes! o-o Are they familiar? We try to pick something that's either stuck in Our head at the time or fits the chapter.

**Bar-Ohki: **o-o -feels bad- We're sorry! -cling- Was it really that sad?

**amberdark: **Four reviews! Wowies! xD You really like it, hm? Here's an update, then.

**silver candle: **Ugh, wasn't there loads of stuff? And then this one's mostly filler.

**GreedxEd: **xD Does you feel bad? Aw, why?

**PaperDragonfly: **Yaoi is luffly! You don't have to be cursed for it!

1. Hrm, not in _this _one, but they may appear in the sequel, if that shows up.

2. He fills a pair of little skin-colored sacs up with water and puts them in the cups of the corset and prays they don't break. xDD

3. Hrm, Edvy? -doesn't mind incest- Well... it's growing on Us. We like Edvy when Envy's abusive. -meanest person ever-

**LoveChild Rosie: **xD Innee sad? Yesh! Hanky!

**Momma Mustang: **Rawr! Cruelty to Edo is wonderful thing! xD We'll trade you updates! Every time Taisa updates a designated fic We'll update the corresponding one! Unless We've got writers' block on said fic. xD Taisa has so muuuuuch. He needs to slow down some! Yessir! Here! xD Did you? -had to get Trisha out of the way- He never gets to sleeps, does he? 'Cept in Roy's lap. xD Yessir!

**Dark Mage Makai: **Hohenheim's absence isn't really elaborated on, true, but he's off on a hunting trip that may take a year or more. -just needed somewhere to put him- Sorry if you wanted to see him. xD Probably, but We never think of these things beforehand. Sorries! Here you are!

**Disclaimer: **Don't own it! Song is _'It Ends Tonight' _by the All American Rejects.

* * *

**THE PRINCESS DIARIES**

_sapphire_

The month slunk by without much to say about it. Edward sank into a bit of depression, and often stayed in bed, eating little, and lying awake, staring at the ceiling. He didn't even get up to see Lord Mustang, who called on Allie frequently. Roy grew accustomed to Rose apologizing, saying that she was sorry, but the princess would not be seeing anyone today. So it was a big surprise to him when Allie herself opened the door, smiled at him, and invited him inside._  
_

He followed dumbly, unsure of what to do, but ultimately seating himself on the bed while Allie paced in front of him. "I've decided something," announced the blonde, and Roy looked at her, tilting his head. She was nuts sometimes, this girl -- depressed one moment, smiling the next. He totally didn't get her, but he supposed it was part of her charm "What've you decided?" He finally decided to reply with a question, since he would rather learn her reason than just sit there stupidly.

"I'm not going to grieve anymore. There's just no point. It's been a month since... since Mama..." She trailed off, rubbing a white glove past her eyes and streaking the silk black. "You know."

Roy grinned, shaking his head and standing to brush away her tears. She looked rather surprised, but he lifted a thumb and brushed the drops of salty water out of the corner of her eyes. "You'll get used to it. You don't have to stop now. She was your mother, you're allowed to grieve for her," he assured her. "Don't worry." He hadn't seen his parents for years, but he didn't mind. They might have been dead by now, but he could have cared less. On the other hand, Allie's mother had been an influential part of her life for as long as she could remember, and it was only now she was losing her. It had to be hard. Hell, and the King had left a few nights before the masquerade ball, or so Roy had heard. There wasn't much left for Allie, who was the only one still residing at the castle. The young lord sighed, pulling the princess into a hug and stroking the back of her head gently. "I'm sorry, Allie. Tonight..."

"I know," she replied, cutting him off. "They're preparing the funeral site. I'm not going to be able to look. After they bury Mama's ashes, they're going to build a cairn over the grave, then mount the tombstone on top, right? It's the first time I've been to a funeral for the Royal Family, since my grandparents died before I was born, but I've seen the tombs. Is that how they do it?"

Roy nodded silently. "It is," he replied. "Will you be at the funeral services?" She really did try so hard to be strong...

"Of course." A spark had ignited in the princess' eyes. Roy thought he might have seen it before in here. "I'll see you there tomorrow."

Roy took this as his cue to leave the room, letting Allie go and stepping to the door. His parting message was, as well, "Of course."

He left the room then. Edward watched him go, sighing. At least then... he'd have someone to hold him.

_/Your subtleties -- they strangle me/_

The prince went downstairs a little after Roy left his room. Stealing into the kitchen, the boy looked around, then dodged a large hand as the cook's palm came out of nowhere, obviously attempting to land on his head. "Woah!" yelped Edward, gloved hands clutching his little sea of ringlets and squishing them quite effectively. "Sieg! What the hell?!" He swore under his breath. Allie usually had no reason to say 'heck'. He didn't think he'd ever heard her cuss. So it was probably a big for thing for her to do so. "Er... I mean... Sieg, you scared me," he corrected himself. "What're you doing?"

"Don't touch the soup," the burly man told him calmly, going back to his business. Edward stared. Sieg Curtis was a large man, maybe even bigger than Armstrong. He really had no idea why they kept him on, other than his quite fantastic cooking, because he was quite frightening. Nor did he know why they kept...

Sieg's _wife._

The prince shivered, even just at the thought of her. She wasn't a large woman, or anything, but she was strong, and hell, he bet she could throw a suit of armor if she decided she felt like it. It wasn't like she wasn't good at martial arts or anything... Izumi Curtis was the master cook in the Royal Kitchen, and Sieg her assistant. She doubled as Edward and Allie's teacher, and had taught them to read, write, and do many forms of math, and after that had come just about everything else.

But it didn't make her any less scary. Izumi didn't care who you were, she'd send you flying. Edward shivered. Hopefully she wasn't here right now... But of course, hope isn't always fulfilled.

"So!" And this time, a pot found itself sitting with a loud CLANG on Edward's head. "So you decided to let that sister of yours run off! Stupid boy! I taught you better than that!" Clang, clang, clang.

Edward whimpered, sinking to the floor to shield what was left of the curls in his hair, but mostly his head. "Ow," he said weakly, and Izumi stood back, glaring at him with dark eyes.

"You _fool," _she mumbled, extending a hand, which he took gingerly. "Why did you let her go?! Now you're lying to that man, and the entire court, to boot! You're an idiot! He's not going to be happy when he finds out, you know! He thinks you're a pretty little princess, not a grubby prince with the temper capacity of a teaspoon!"

"I'm not little! And besides, I didn't _let _her leave. She would have left if I'd tried to stop her or not. It wouldn't have mattered what I said, because she'd have left anyway!" Edward folded his arms, glaring right back at his sensei with a look that clearly said 'challenge me and I'll rip your head off'. Not only was he sick of being depressed, he was quite indignant that she was placing the blame on him, so even his immense fear of her was overpowered. But really, he was torn today. It was true. He was lying to Roy, wasn't he? Lying to someone he... loved. He'd realized this a few days beforehand. He, Edward Elric of the 'I'm not into romance so don't try' impressions, was in love with some lord. The court would be overjoyed. _Not. _He had no problem with loving a man, but the court liked tradition, and traditionally the princess married a suitor she chose, not the prince. And he had to wonder -- would Roy have a problem with it? As soon as Allie returned and traded him back, and he took up his rightful role... would Roy go to Allie? No, he told himself firmly. Roy wasn't like that at all. At least... he hoped not. He supposed he'd have to wait for an answer to that question.

A smack on the head broke Edward out of his thoughts, and he clapped his hand over the quickly-swelling bump. "What the hell?!"

Izumi glared at him. "You never listen, do you?! No excuse..." She rolled her eyes, shaking her head and forcing her many dark braids to swing and clack together. "Anyway. What are you going to tell that man when he finds out about you?"

"I..." Edward swallowed. The inside of his mouth had gone dry. "I'm not sure. I'll figure it out after a little while. Anyway... the funeral... um..."

Izumi nodded, putting the pot she'd hit Edward with down as her expression sobered. "Yes. Are you going to be all right?" Despite her penchant of kicking Edward's ass (she'd hit Allie, but of course, not as much as poor Edward) she was still like a surrogate mother to them, and would show concern if something happened to one of them.

Edward nodded. "Think so," he replied. "I'll see you tomorrow, Sensei."

_/I can't explain myself at all/_

The rest of the day passed hastily. Edward found himself thinking of the funeral with more and more dread. He didn't want to go see his mother's body be burned to ashes by the flames he himself would set. But it was something everyone seemed to experience, and he was going to be no worse off. "Okay," he said to himself as he sat alone in his sister's bedroom. "I'm just going to go and do it, and that'll be it." Normally, the Prince or the King would set alight the blaze that would consume the body of the Queen, but under the circumstances, because both seemed to be missing, the duty was handed to the Princess. Edward really did not want to, but there wasn't much he could do about it.

"At least," he told himself, sighing, "I'll get it over with. And I'll have someone around." Edward sighed to himself, summoning Rose in to take the damn corset off before climbed into bed and curled up, dreading tomorrow but still allowing it to come.

_/And all the wants, and all the needs/_

Usually, Edward was alowed to sleep in for quite a while, but today, Rose shook him awake. She was wearing a black gown that he assumed was for mourning, and as she shoved a gown that looked a lot like hers but fancier toward him, he knew his guess was right. "Up, up," chattered the girl, but she seemed to be quite exhausted. "You've got to get up, Ed... big... big day..."_  
_

Edward blinked, getting up and pushing Rose down to sit on the bed. She plopped down gratefully. "Kay, fine," he said agreeably. "Help me get dressed, and then I think you need a nap." She nodded, getting back up to retrieve a corset from the closet and fitting the evil little thing around his stomach. When she was done, she fell back onto the bed and promptly fell asleep. Ed sniggered, shrugging as he reached over his shoulder to zip up the gown. He left Rose there when he came back from breakfast. _Someone _was bound to come up here to clean up a little, some maid, and he was pretty sure she'd be woken up.

The blonde swept out of his sister's room, descending the stairs to the Entrance Hall and then out the door to the grounds.

The middle of the marble landing at the top of the steps had been piled high with massive logs. On the inside lay smaller sticks and twigs which would catch as soon as Edward placed the flame to them. And, on top of all that, lay the queen herself. Her brown hair was twisted into an elaborate messy bun, and she was clad in a simple white gown. Even in death, she was stunning, and the prince fought back another wave of tears. This was truly... the end. Damn his father to the seventh circle of hell, that bastard. A few days before the ball had seen the King ride off to go _hunting. _He wouldn't be back for months. And durwife had ing that time, hissickened and died. Beautiful, Dad, thought Edward furiously, sighing and standing as tall as he could in front of a sea of subjects. So this... was it.

Everyone dropped to their knees as the remainder of the Royal Family exited the castle and stood by her mother's crematorial mound. No one spoke a word, even the littlest children who didn't understand what was happening. Even they didn't need to be hushed by panicky mothers. Without a word, Rubens stepped up to the princess and handed over a large torch, already burning brightly.

Edward took it. Apparently the bishop, or whatever he was had already spoken, so all there was left to do now was light the flames. He sighed, lowering the torch toward the wood. The peasants looked on, all expecting... what? He sighed, again, then shoved the torch into the stack of wood.

He didn't wait for it to catch.

Without warning, the 'princess' turned, skirts flying out behind him as he dashed back into the castle. In the row of nobles and Royal Servants who stood on the sidelines, Roy Mustang's eyes widened. The princess was -- he had to catch up. He dashed after Allie, to the indignant surprise of the mourning peasants.

She was on her way up the stairs and disappearing down the upper hall when he came into the entrance hall. By the time Roy reached that point, Allie had disappeared into her room. He stepped along the corridor quickly.

Edward sighed, shutting the door and pulling the dress off, working the corset off and with it the 'breasts' (they had been shoving small sacs filled with water into the cups of the corset) off quickly. He pulled off the Rockbells' false skin then, metal limbs gleaming in the light. He was done. Done, done, done. He didn't feel like sleeping with all that finery on, anyway...

And that was where Roy found him moments later, shirt off, facing the door. The blackhaired lord faltered. He'd walked in on Allie -- but it wasn't Allie. It was a boy with long, soft blonde hair that was falling about his shoulders and pained yellow eyes. He spluttered, and Edward stared. "You're --"

"Yeah," said the boy, folding his arms. "Not a girl, I know."

_/All I don't want to need at all/_


	6. Emerald

Woah, such a positive response... xD We love you guys! This'll be the last, We think. It's been a nice time, hasn't it? We're so excited! This is Our first continuation that We've actually finished! xD Roy is so dramatic in this chapter with his big speech. -eats clams- Mm, clam. It's Caturday, you guys! Serious business!

**Review Replies:**

**Jane Austen Girl**: No? We love that song. Actually, We started out hating it. xD Eddie? Yesh, he does need huggles, huh?

**Bar-Ohki:** This is what now! xD

**Momma Mustang: **xD Did you really? xD Was it? We're glad Taisa liked it!

o-o Oooh, true... xD Okays, nyu. Taisa'll just have to bug Us to update stuff. Bug Us _lots. _xD Shush, you know there was nothing else We could do with her as much as We does. xD We're updating! We're updating! xD Love Us!

**LoveChild Rosie: **THAT HE IS. xD Innee horrid? Didn't even knock.

**GreedxEd: **xD They're _bi, _okay? Well, at least Roy is, Ed didn't care who he dated at all, or if he even did, so it kinda makes him bi too. xD But neither of them care much about sexual preference.

**silver candle: **xD Isn't he mean? Poor Edo's got it rough. Oh well. He's always cuter when he's in compromising situations. xD

**AirElemental101: **xD;;; Sorry! Here's your chapter! xD Augh, that stupid thing. Sorry! The sentence was supposed to be 'And during that time, his wife had sickened and died', however, Our keyboard likes to type what We put at different places in the sentences. O-o Sorry, We didn't catch that.

It's been a nice time with you guys, but now it's time for an end. xD We're sorry! There might be a sequel, though, bug Us to do it and maybe We'll figure the rest of the plot out. xD Good night.

**Disclaimer: **Don't own it! Song this time is In The Land of Twilight, Under the Moon by Yuki Kajiura, an insert song from _.hack//SIGN_.

* * *

**THE PRINCESS DIARIES**

_emerald_

His mind was rather in a state of disarray. The princess... a fake? But the prince... why would he take on such a disguise? And where was the real princess?

He had too many questions. Roy wanted to ask them all, but he sensed Edward wasn't in the mood for such things. "So..."

"Save it." The blonde wasn't looking at Roy, he was looking at the sky outside the window. "There's not much I can do now. You know my secret, Rose knows, Allie knows, Sensei knows, Winry knows, Rubens knows... there's just no point in hiding who I am anymore, is there?" He paused. Something was going on below, and it wasn't anything to do with his mother. It wasn't the heavy silence of mourning, it was a bright, happy cheering, the bouncy excitement that allowed the deer to run in their jumpy way. "Shit," said Edward pleasantly, taking Roy's hand and dragging him to the wall. He began to run his fingers over it. Both had forgotten about the lie, at least for now.

"What're you doing?" asked Roy, who was quite interested. He stepped forward, and Ed let go of his hand, going back to searching the wall.

"There's a little -- aha!" Suddenly, the wall swung upen, and Edward hugged himself as a gust of wind passed him. He was only in his boxers, after all, and the air in there was pretty frigid. "Anyway, this's been here for ages. It's for defense of the Royal Family -- it's a series of passages that goes through the entire castle. There's an entrance in every room. C'mon, we gotta go to my room." He walked off. Roy found himself following.

* * *

_/In the land of twilight, under the moon/_

* * *

They walked through the tunnels for a while. The passages twisted and turned, and Roy had bumped into a lot of corners. Edward felt a little bad about this. He had neglected to bring any sort of light, and thruogh he knew the way around, Roy did not. He opted to remedy it by taking the man's hand again, and it seemed to do some good. Finally, Edward stopped, grasping a small doorknob and opening the little door. Light spilled into the passageway, and both males turned their gazes away for a moment. 

Edward stepped forward then, and began to root through a bureau. He pulled out some proper mens' wear, slipping it all on with the air of a starving man who has just been given a flask of water and a loaf of bread. "Ugh... you do _not _know how good this feels," he mumbled, sighing happily. "After dresses and corsets, this is heaven."

Roy blinked. He'd forgotten momentarily that Edward had pulled off such a deception. "Yes... about that," he began. Edward began to say 'save it' again, but Roy held up a hand. "You lied to me, Edward. You lied to the whole court, played with their trust and their faith. You conned me into falling for you, and you don't give me any reason to trust you anymore. And yet... yet... If I leave right now, I don't think I could possibly live with myself. You may be Risembool's prince, but I can't help who I love."

Edward... well, he stared. He wasn't exactly expecting this. He expected to be scolded, told he was a treacherous snake, that he'd never be able to take the throne now. But here they were, in the middle of this situation, and Roy was _confessing his love_? What a weird guy. "No," he replied quietly, stepping over to the man and linking his arms gently around Roy's middle. "I can't help it either."

There was a cheer from below then, and Edward stepped away again, looking out the window. "Lucky my room's got a good view of the front gro -- HEY!" The blonde darted away, hauling open the door to the corridor.

Roy dashed after him. "Wait!" he barked. Edward turned, looking at him in impatient curiousness. "...We'll go together."

Edward grinned, nodding. He slipped his hand into Roy's as the other passed him, grin widening when the blackhaired man's grip tightened a little. He was really trying his hardest not to jump out the window or something else incredibly stupid. The person at the entrance to the castle was someone who definitely would not appreciate his dying because he was excited to see them. "Let's go, then," the boy said after a moment. "We're the only ones up here, and besides, everyone's waiting for us." Edward looked up at Roy. When the young lord nodded, the boy grinned again and darted away, dragging Roy with him.

* * *

_/We dance for the idiots/_

* * *

It didn't take too long to dash through the halls, past towering suits of armor and vast tapestries depicting a likewise vast amount of subjects. There were statues and pillars to dodge, corners to turn, and carpets to sprint down. They reached a row of maybe twenty-five portraits and Roy paused to look at them. They were all identical: men with long blonde hair tied back in ponytails, yellow eyes, and beards. Some had glasses, some didn't, and the names below the portraits were all the same too: HOHENHEIM OF LIGHT, and then a Roman numeral beside the name. He identified them immediately as past kings of Risembool Castle. The last one was XXIII, and Roy expected that this was the current king. "They all look the same," he said blankly. 

Ed, who had been walking on, turned to see what Roy was talking about. "Oh," he said. "Yeah. For some reason, the King has always looked the same. I'm glad_ I _don't look like that. I'd rather not look like a_ bastard,_" he added under his breath. "C'mon. These guys are boring anyway."

Roy blinked, smirked, and nodded. "All right." He took Edward's hand, and they dashed down the hallways once more.

There was another pause, actually, in which they reached the grand spirally staircase. It wasn't the straight one that Edward always went up to go to his room; this was the formal staircase that most would take to get to the closed ballroom above. It wasn't the same ballroom as the one they'd had the masked ball in so many weeks ago, obviously; this one was reserved for coronations and wasn't used very much otherwise. This part of the staircase had a small landing and then continued up to the ballroom and above that to the domed roof of the castle, in which the floor, ceilings, and walls were all made of glass. One could look up and see the sky, and then look down to see the Great Hall. Not, obviously, for those who didn't like heights. Ed didn't really care, but he didn't go up there much anyway. Now, he went to a small door in the wall, opened it up, and pulled out a couple of satin sheets. Roy blinked. "What's this for?" asked the taller male, lifting a brow as Edward began to wrap the sheets around his hands.

Edward just grinned. This had always been a favorite pastime of his and Allie's, and hell, even their Mama had joined in a lot. It was Mama who'd got them into it anyway; she'd taught them to do it, and they would do it for ages, yelling and whooping the whole time, and then run back up the stairs for another run. "Banister sliding," he replied, knotting off Roy's sheets and going to get some for himself. "You'll be picking calluses the size of gold coins off your palms if you don't cover them up in something. Satin's best cause it's slippery. C'mon." He swung a leg over the side of the banister, Roy staring at him the entire time as he positioned himself backwards on the banister, facing the top of the stairs. "We're going down." Edward was obviously holding on tightly, Roy could see, because his feet weren't touching the staircase and, well, he had begun to slide slowly down the banister. He was obviously loosening his fingers.

"Hold on!" barked Roy, descending the stairs to the place Edward was now. The boy tightened his fingers again, blinking up at the darkhaired man as he stopped. "Is this even safe?"

The face of the blonde immediately split into a wide grin. "Of course not," he answered. "We all like it anyway. The risk makes it fun. C'mon, it's faster."

Roy watched in near-horror as Edward loosened his fingers completely, keeping just enough of a hold on the banister to keep from falling, but sliding rapidly down all the same. His braid flicked forward over his shoulder, pushed forward by the air that was whipping over his shoulders. And then he actually took a hand off the banister when he was about halfway down, grinning and waving at Roy as he slid. When he was just about to fly off the bottom of the rail, the boy actually pushed himself up, turned around, and vaulted off the end, curling as he hit the ground and rolling into a somersault. "Yes!"

The young lord stared. And stared some more. What the _hell _had just happened here?!

Edward was waving at him from the bottom of the stairs, grinning as he began to unbind his hands. "C'mon! We don't have all day, Pony!"

Roy groaned, then swung his leg over the banister, mounting it like he would a horse. "Here goes nothing," he mumbled, a little uneasily, but Edward's pure ecstasy in doing such a thing had allowed him to decide that it wasn't going to be that bad at all.

* * *

_/Ring around the roses, jump to the moon/_

* * *

Roy's slide didn't actually go as he'd predicted, with broken limbs and a bloody Roy. No, actually it didn't harm him at all, except for knocking the wind out of both he and Edward as, when he'd flown off the banister (Roy had no skills like Edward did, obviously), he'd flown smack dab into Edward, and both of them tumbled in a knot of arms, legs, and metal. By this time, even if Roy was always one to be calm, cool, and in control of everything that happened (because nothing was inevitable for Roy Mustang), they were both laughing too hard to care. Edward squirmed for a moment, then found himself both untangled and pinned under Roy. A slight tinge swept over his face, but he managed to grin. "Hiya," was all the blonde said, grin increasing tenfold as Roy's normally-pale cheeks turned slightly pink. "I'm all for this, but can we wait till after? We're kinda in a hurry, remember?" 

"...Yes," said Roy, with a hint of regret, but he rolled off Edward all the same. He stood, extending a hand, and Edward took it gratefully. He was glad Roy understood that the person out there could _not _wait. It would have been impossible to explain why, since Roy hadn't seen the person outside the window, but he seemed to understand, and if he understood then there was no explanation needed.

As Edward stood, he dashed off again, down the hall that would take him to the main stairs and the main entrance of the hall. Roy was jerked forward, but quickly regained his balance and jogged after the exciteable prince.

* * *

_/We sing with the castanets/_

* * *

Edward Elric pushed open the door to the front grounds and found himself swallowed up into the embrace of one Allie Elric. "Allie!" He clung to her. She was a little skinnier than he was used to, and she was entirely too grubby, but despite her short hair, the princess of Risembool Castle was highly recognizeable, and obviously she didn't care about disguises anymore, because she just grinned and buried her face in his shoulder. "Allie... where were you this whole time?" 

Roy stepped out after him, smiling as he realized just who the boy was hugging. So this was the actual Princess Elric, hm? No wonder people hadn't recognized Edward in the disguise: they were quite alike in their looks. Both were blonde, with the same passionate yellow eyes. There were a few differences, but all dressed up, most people would overlook them. Edward's eyes were a different shape than Allie's round ones, but they were still quite alike. Roy could see why Allie had forced her _brother _to take her place. She'd obviously seen the similarities.

The younger blonde looked back up to her brother, smiling. "Out in the wild blue yonder," she replied with an Edward-ian grin. Both Edward and Roy were a little taken aback at how similar to Edward's own it was. "I went to Xing for a while, actually."

"...Across the desert?"

"Mmhmm! I bought a horse from a dealer and rode across."

Edward stared. This was his baby sister. And she had gone across the great desert, across the Xingian border? He... really had underestimated her, hadn't he? He smiled, though, letting her go to look her over. "Did you have a good time not being princess, Allie?"

"I did, nii-san!" she chirped, grinning. Her attention was drawn to Roy then, and she blinked at him for a moment before smiling. "Is this the suitor?"

The blonde prince blushed. "Yeah, um, about that..."

Allie paused for a moment, thinking. Then her smile widened. "I see. Have fun with him, nii-san." She stepped away from her brother with a small cough. Edward's lips curved downwards into a small frown before he was totally rammed into by Roy, who actually picked him up, and found himself needing to use those lips for something entirely different. He grinned through the kiss, knowing that just about every girl in the kingdom who fawned over him was watching him kiss this man, and he _didn't care at all. _Too bad for them, was all he was thinking about that, and then he threw that thought away and threw his whole being into that one kiss.

Allie, who was standing with Rubens, Rose, Armstrong, and just about the entire rest of the court, grinned. "Knew it," she announced in glee. "Rose, Rubens, you guys owe me like thirty sens each."

Edward, who had just broken the kiss, more for air than want of stopping, glared over at them. "You guys were _betting?!"_


End file.
